"Lancelot's Pilgrimage": the book that turned the world of fantasy

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

The work of Yulia Voznesenskaya "The Pilgrimage of Lancelot" is a continuation of the author's dilogy about the second coming of Christ, the second part of the sensational novel "The Way of Cassandra, or Adventures with Pasta". The book has gained immense popularity among young people due to its intricate plot, excellent descriptions, and simple and understandable language.

The novel describes several historical epochs occurring one within the other. Any action of a character in one of the historical periods can lead to completely unexpected consequences in another.

This concept itself was unique at the time of writing Lancelot's Pilgrimage. For this novel, Yulia received several prestigious awards, as well as the devotion of enthusiastic readers not only in Russia, but also far beyond its borders.

Writer

Yulia Voznesenskaya is a talented contemporary author,one of the founders of the Orthodox fantasy genre. In her works, she often quotes the Bible or makes references to the works of various figures of spiritual culture. The works of the writer are in the nature of a religious parable, however (unlike John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, who also liked to bring elements of Christian culture into his works), Julia does not suffer from excessive dogmatism, preferring to explain immutable truths in the form of a fascinating and interesting narrative.

Voznesenskaya's creative career began in the mid-eighties of the last century, when she got a job as a translator in one of the offices that published books in the fantasy genre. The writer was not satisfied with the fact that domestic authors prefer to copy what has already been created, and not work on their original concepts. She decided to try to write her own novel, in which she could put her personal view of the world.

Ideology

"Religion without religion" - this is how you can characterize the very concept of Voznesenskaya's work. The same meaning is laid down in the work "Lancelot's Pilgrimage". The main characters always live according to their conscience, make moral choices without the influence of heavenly or miraculous forces. The works of Yulia Voznesenskaya are characterized by the absence of the principle of character duality. All the characters in her books are good or bad. This shows a great similarity between the style of the writer and the works of Clive Staples Lewis, the author of the famous Chronicles of Narnia. Religious symbolism viewed through the prism of moralhuman principle, this is what the ideology of Yulia Voznesenskaya is manifested in.

Lancelot's Pilgrimage

This amazing teen novel was written in the early 2000s, at a time when quality literature for children was almost non-existent. The skillful combination of knightly ethics, computer technology and Christian morality in the plot made the novel a real bestseller among young readers.

The book "The Pilgrimage of Lancelot" has repeatedly received prestigious prizes and awards, and also won prizes in competitions for children's religious literature.

The author of the novel notes that her goal was only to write an interesting story in which she could share her own views on life.

Storyline

In Lancelot's Pilgrimage, Voznesenskaya creates a unique world that is entirely on the Internet and is called Reality. The future has changed the Earth and its inhabitants so much that all people prefer to live in a computer simulation of reality, in which you can choose any appearance, name and era for a comfortable existence. The planet is almost destroyed. The only opportunity for people to live for themselves for a little while is virtual reality, in which they expect the end of the world and do whatever they want until it comes.

The novel is dedicated to a disabled boy Lance, who lives in distant Norway. He spends a lot of time in "Reality", living in the medieval town of Camelot. One day he meets King Arthur. During the correspondence, it turns out that Arthur isa girl named Jenny.

Meeting in Norway, the friends decide to travel to the capital of the world, Jerusalem.

Mythological foundation

In "Lancelot's Pilgrimage" Julia Voznesenskaya tried to describe the second coming of Christ to earth. Being a deeply religious person, the writer transformed biblical stories and theses, turning them into parts of her fascinating narrative.

The whole novel is permeated with Christian ideology. For example, the plot is tied to Lancelot's choice between Christ and the Antichrist, which are drawn by the writer in the images of the Healer and the Source of Truth. The day and hour when Christ descends to earth depends on a mere mortal.

In addition to direct borrowings from the Old and New Testaments, Julia actively uses fragments from myths and legends of various peoples and tribes in the "Lancelot's Pilgrimage". This makes the work deeper and more enjoyable for thinking people to read.

Reader opinions

Since the publication of the novel, many readers have left rave reviews for "Lancelot's Pilgrimage". Of course, there are those who did not like the book. These people in their reviews indicated that they were not satisfied with the religious overtones of the work, and not the literary skill of the author.

Readers of "Lancelot's Pilgrimage" noted the phenomenal artistic originality of the novel, its uniqueness and dissimilarity to similar works in the fantasy genre.

Also, many were struck by the complexityand intricacy of the plot, its philosophical overtones and at the same time naturalness.